The phone rang and because I didn't feel like answering it, I let the machine do its work.
"I assume you know who I am, so I won't say. If you want me to get back to you, leave your name, phone number, and the reason you're calling. Ciao." BEEP!
"Coop, answer the freakin' phone!"
Snickering, I reached the required three inches to pick up the cordless. "What kind of tone is that to use when calling someone?"
My caller snorted. "What kind of message is that? You sound like a biotch." I only laughed. "It annoys me when you screen your calls. Damn. And why do you own a cell? You don't answer that either."
"I'm so sorry."
She snorted again. I was on the verge of telling her that she sounded like a horse, but she seemed agitated enough. "What're you doing?"
"Your mama."
"Why can't you ever be normal?"
"Because I don't wanna," I replied, sounding like a petulant child. "What do you want? I'm surprised you can come up for air with that new boyfriend of yours," I teased. That walk to the Starbucks across the street had turned into so many outings for the pair, that I had lost count many weeks ago. Julie was akin to a light bulb, shining brightly even mentioning Kyle's name. I had to admit. They were pretty cute together. I teased her that if they ended up marrying and making babies, I would have the most adorable godchildren in all the world.
"Don't be jealous."
"Please. I don't want him."
"Yes, I know--penises hold no interest for you. I have a strong feeling that I know who you want though," she teased back.
I groaned as I stretched out on my couch. "Let's not start with this subject again, Julie. How are things with Kyle?" I asked, changing the subject before it really started.
"Fabulous. How are things with Brooke?" All traces of anger when she mentioned Brooke's name had disappeared by now. Four months into our steadily growing friendship had caused Julie to warm up to her, which I hadn't known possible considering the amount of animosity she had in high school.
"Fine," I answered. "Our friendship is just fine."
"When is it going to be more?"
"Julie, have you ever heard of the expression if it ain't broke don't fix it?"
"And, Cooper, have you ever heard of the expression love is friendship set on fire?"
"When did we start talking about love?"
"Just now. Try to keep up with the conversation."
"I could just hang up."
"And I could just come over there and kick your ass if you do."
"You have got to be the sweetest best friend in the world, Julie."
"I know--my sweetness is a cross that I must bear. Now I asked you what you were doing? And please don't bring up my mother again," she warned me.
"Nothing," I truthfully answered. I had been channel surfing before she called, but since that didn't sound intriguing, I decided not to mention it. The remote now rested on my stomach, and the television on the Food Network. Chopped, one of my favorite shows from that station was on, and I idly wondered how the chefs would make those peculiar ingredients work in order to create a decent dish.
"What are you wearing?"
Lips against the speaker, I grinned. "Clothes."
Julie muttered something, and I was pretty sure that it was a curse word. "What kind of clothes?"
I glanced down at my sweat pants and T-shirt. "The cotton kind."
"Cooper?"
"All right. Gray sweats and a white T-shirt with a small red sauce stain on it."
"So, you've already eaten dinner?" she sounded disappointed.
"No, I'm heating up a can of ravioli, and when the stuff plopped out of the can, some of its sauce splashed on me."
"Turn the stove off, take a bath--"
I interrupted her, "Hey, Julie, I'm clean. I took a shower less than an hour ago, and scrubbed every part of my body."
"Good! That will save time. Turn off the stove and put on something presentable enough for the public to see."
"I'm in for the night."
"No you aren't. We're going out. Pick you up at eight. Bye!"
Swiftly sitting up on the couch, I practically yelled her name into the phone, but Julie had already hung up. For two minutes I contemplated calling her back, but then I changed my mind. If she wanted to go out then we would go out. After turning the television off, I walked into the kitchen, soon tossing my mediocre dinner in the garbage disposal. Going up to my bedroom, I stared at the clothes hanging in my closet. Something presentable enough for the public to see. All right.
Within five minutes, I was dressed in blue jeans and because I sensed that Julie wanted me to look a little nice, I chose my only cashmere sweater to wear with it. Lightweight, it consisted of two colors, sky blue blending into white in the middle, which blended into a darker blue toward the bottom of the sweater. Although freelance web designing afforded me a comfortable lifestyle, I didn't usually purchase pricey clothing, but when I saw this sweater it called out to me. This was the first time that I had worn it. It felt good. Julie probably wouldn't believe her eyes. Just to shock her further, I added a touch of lipstick and slipped in the dainty diamond stud earrings that Mom gave me for my 25th birthday.
Wallet tucked into my back pocket, I returned to the living room where I watched another type of cooking show until the doorbell rang at precisely 8:00. I was impressed. Julie was never really on time. For example, pick you up at 8:00 actually meant pick you up at 8:20. Television once again switched off, I pulled my sweater down as I stood up and went to the front door. Heart skipping a beat, I smiled at the woman leaning against my doorframe with her right hand hidden behind her back. This was quite a surprise!
"Hey you," the brunette softly greeted.
"Hey back at you." I looked her up and down liking what I saw. Brooke was dressed in a perfectly pressed black suit with her pant legs flaring at the bottom. Beneath the matching two-button jacket was a royal blue dress shirt. A geometrically patterned silk tie done in shades of blue and gold hung from her neck. There was two feet of space between us, but I could smell her spicy and so very intoxicating fragrance. When I asked Brooke what was the occasion, she showed me what she had in her concealed hand. Inside a plastic case lay a wrist corsage consisting of small white roses and baby's breath.
"I asked you to the senior prom, but I didn't take you," Brooke spoke with evident regret. "However, if it isn't too late, I'd like to take you out now. I don't know of any proms that we could crash, but hopefully I'll show you a good time." Her smile was so endearing that it would be impossible for me to refuse. "So you want to?"
"Of course it's not too late. I'd love to go somewhere with you. Oh, and just so we're clear, Julie knows about this, right? She called me a little while ago saying that she and I were going out."
Brooke grinned. "Yes, she's my pimp."
I laughed as she reached for my wrist, slipping the corsage on. "It's beautiful. Should I change? Next to you I don't look dressed up enough."
"You think that you could look better than what are you, which is amazing?"
Damn it, she made me blush. My cheeks were probably shining like Rudolph the reindeer's nose. "Thanks."
"You're welcome. Are you ready?"
"Yes." Walking outside, I locked my door.
"If this were the prom, I would have rented a limo for us. Have you ever ridden in a limo?" Brooke asked as we headed down the three steps attached to my small porch. I wondered how I had missed the long black stretch limousine parked on the curb. The driver's door opening, a sharply dressed man walked toward the rear of the large automobile and opened a door for us.
"Nope." Offering our driver a small wave, I slipped in beside Brooke. Grinning, she informed me that I was doing it again. Because I didn't know what it was, I asked her to clarify.
"The one word replies. I see that you haven't grown out of it."
I shook my head, smiling just a little. "Nope."
After eating the most delicious porterhouse at a romantically inclined steakhouse, Brooke asked me if I wanted to go to a bar, however, she wouldn't tell me what type of bar she had in mind. Parting from the chauffeur and his limousine at the steakhouse, my uh...date led me to a black Jaguar, which turned out to be hers. Enveloped in supple leather, I enjoyed the ride to our next destination.
"Coop?"
"Hmm?"
"I've been thinking about when you told me that you thought you saw me on the roof of that hotel during our high school reunion, and I might have an idea of what happened."
I turned my head in her direction. "What? The punch I drank at the party was spiked with hallucinogens, rendering me temporarily delusional?" As she laughed I added, "It did taste funny."
"No, that's not my theory. Besides, I didn't drink any punch, and yet my dream links up with what you revealed."
"What's your theory?"
"Fate."
"Fate," I dumbly repeated.
"Yes. The nonhuman force that is often believed to decide events in human life." Noticing my questioning look, she explained, "I've been reading the dictionary among other books across the street from my therapist at the library. Though I strongly believe in free will, what if some fate decided to give you a nudge in my direction to achieve two main things. It wanted you to save my life. So it was fate that took my image on that roof. It wanted you to come find me, and stop me from doing something irreversibly stupid."
My eyebrows rose as far as they could. "Huh. Fate." I shrugged. Not a day passed that I didn't think about that night, and yet I hadn't come up with a reason that sounded sane. "Could be. Are you sure that you weren't there? Maybe you forgot." Every time that I asked Brooke this, she was adamant that she had never been to the Destiny Hotel. And though I kept inquiring, I was aware that it was pretty much impossible for Brooke to have truly been on the roof. Time wise it didn't make sense, and like Detective Dunn mentioned, Brooke hadn't shown up on any of the surveillance cameras.
"I realize that I swallowed a bottle of sleeping pills and half a bottle of brandy, but I didn't forget because I was never on that roof. It wasn't me."
I was quiet for a moment, expression thoughtful. "Could have been your guardian angel."
"You're my angel."
This blushing thing was getting really annoying.
When we pulled into a busy parking lot, I read the sign. "Karaoke Knights. You found a bar with my last name in it."
"Not quite." Beaming, she removed her seatbelt, and I followed suit. "When I first saw this bar, it was named Pop's Brewery, but Pop wanted to sell because his business was declining, and he wanted to retire anyway. So I bought it, fixed it up, and now refer to it as Karaoke Knights." She touched the tip of my nose with her index finger. "I named it in honor of you."
Good thing that there were no flies in Brooke's car, because my mouth fell wide open. I glanced back to the glowing sign and then to her. "Me?" I pointed toward myself. "You bought a business and named it after me?"
She nodded. "Out of everyone on this Earth, you're my favorite, Coop."
"I don't deserve--"
She pressed two fingers to my lips, stilling them. "I'm not sure what you were about to say, but whatever it was, it was invalid. I'm the one who doesn't deserve you." Even in the dim lighting I could see her eyes welling with tears. "I love you, Cooper. I know that you already have one, but you're my best friend, and these last four months of getting to know you have been the best. Thank you for saving my life so that I could have a second chance. I didn't realize that being this happy was possible for me. I don't think you have any idea of how much you've influenced me for the better."
Removing her fingers, Brooke smiled at me before exiting the car. Hurriedly wiping at the tears on my face, I got out and walked with her into the bar. When she held the door open for me, I started to head inside, but then halted. Looking up at my friend, I softly smiled and stood on tiptoe to kiss her cheek.
"And I love you, Brooke."
We were seated at a table near the stage where people had been performing. There was a twist to the karaoke competition that night. Sitting toward the left of the stage were three judges (customers who received complimentary appetizers for participating) and at the end of someone's performance they obtained one to ten points from each judge. If their score totaled at least twenty-one points, they would get a free drink. If their performance earned them a perfect score of thirty points (had yet to happen) they received a free drink and an appetizer, which could be anything on the menu from buffalo wings to fried zucchini.
Leaning toward me, Brooke said that she would be right back. I watched as she walked up to the stage and adjusted the microphone to her level. When she greeted the audience, she received a hearty greeting in return. Her jacket having been placed on the back of her chair earlier, she rolled up the sleeves of her dress shirt, exposing bronzed forearms.
"I would like to thank all of you for attending this grand opening week of Karaoke Knights. If it were not for the gorgeous redhead seated right there, this wouldn't have been possible." Brooke pointed to me and a spotlight was soon to follow. My initial response besides blushing was to hide underneath the table, but I remained in my seat, waving at the various people offering me smiles. Someone clapped me on the back, but I didn't turn around.
"Will everyone please give Cooper Knight, the fine lady whom this establishment was named for, a huge round of applause?" While the audience clapped, I wondered if severe blushing could cause a fever to develop. When Brooke called my name, I looked up at her expectantly. "Coop, if there was a transmitter that would allow me to broadcast how I feel about you to every person in the world, I would find it and use it for that purpose." I knew she wasn't drunk after only taking three sips from a mug of beer. She didn't sound or look drunk. She was glowing up on that stage and she looked happy. And despite my flattered embarrassment, Brooke's happiness was of great importance to me.
"I love you, Coop." A small group of women seated together uttered a collective 'aww, how sweet' as I guessed that same person clapped me on the back. If they kept that up I'd be bruised by morning. "You're my best friend, my heroine, my warrior, and it's my opinion that you're my soul mate as well. We parted ways for ten years, but miraculously...suddenly found our way back to each other, and this time it's ten times better than it was before." When she smiled at me as though I was the only person in that room, I forgot to be embarrassed.
"This time I don't intend to let you go, and I don't mean that in a creepy, stalkerish, possessive way." The audience chuckled and I grinned. "I just mean that I'm going to spend every day letting you know how appreciative I am that you've given me this second chance. I'm going to let you know how appreciative I am of you, of your caring, your kindness, and your love. I won't ever take you for granted again, Cooper Knight."
Brooke spent a few seconds talking with the D.J., before she returned to the microphone. "And now I'd like to sing a song performed by the awesome Aretha Franklin. Coop, this one is for you." Oh, she was going to sing! My eyes lit up. I hadn't heard Brooke sing since high school when during our junior year she agreed to star in a musical play that another student wrote. The only reason I went to the play was because I knew that she would be in it. Unfortunately, the play had sucked big time, but Brooke's voice was unforgettable.
Lookin' out on the morning rain,
I used to feel so uninspired
And when I knew I had to face another day
Lord, it made me feel so tired
Before the day I met you
Life was so unkind
But your love was the key to my peace of mind...
Continuing her incredible version of Natural Woman, Brooke walked down the steps and toward our table where she kneeled on one knee in front of me. Gazing into my eyes, she held the cordless microphone with her right hand as she grasped my hand with her left. My heart appeared to skip several beats at that point as it occurred to me that this night was the best prom ever.
A few minutes passed midnight we arrived back at my house. It was on the tip of my tongue to ask Brooke inside for a nightcap, but my tongue hadn't budged to help me enunciate words as she walked me the short distance to my front door. Smiling, she inquired if I had a good time.
Finished unlocking the door, I caught her smile, and tossed her one back. "A good time doesn't even begin to describe this incredible night you put together. Thank you, Brooke."
"It's my pleasure to please you."
I playfully rolled my eyes. "Mushy much?"
"You know that deep down you like it." Grinning, she leaned down, catching me by surprise with a kiss on the lips. Although quick, it was enough to warm me up quite nicely.
"Mm, what's the second thing?"
I could tell that she was thinking, but she didn't have a clue what I was referring to. "What second thing?"
"When describing your fate theory, you said that there were two main things that fate wanted to accomplish. The first was for me to find you, help you. You never mentioned the second."
"Oh, that." Brooke slowly nodded. "The second thing was for you and I to possibly explore what we could have."
"And what could we have?"
"This." If I was warm following her innocent little kiss, I was positively scorching as Brooke pinned me against the wall, her soft lips moving against mine, her tongue reintroducing itself to my mouth. And I thought she was a good kisser at seventeen! My arms wrapped around her shoulders, I wantonly pressed myself against her. If they were into voyeurism, my neighbors could be getting a good show.
"How was that?" Brooke breathlessly inquired.
I sighed with pleasure. "Best kiss in the history of kisses."
"You flatter me."
"Okay, I'll narrow it down. It was the best kiss in the history of kisses that I've received." I reckoned that she liked that answer since she kissed me again. This was officially more than just a friendship. I recalled Julie's quote--love is friendship set on fire. I had to tell her that she was correct.
"I should go."
I nodded. "Okay."
Brooke didn't move. "It's getting late."
"Yep." She kissed me again, whispering goodnight against my lips. "Goodnight," I softly returned.
"I'll call you tomorrow--or later."
I smiled. "Great." Winking at me, she started to turn when I grabbed her tie, tugging on it until she faced me again. "Sleep with me." Her eyebrows lifted and a saucy smile appeared on her lips. "It's the first date--no sex."
"Then what's the point?" I could tell that Brooke was only kidding, but I punched her arm anyway. "Ow."
"We should take this slow. No rush."
Her dark head nodded. "I can do slow."
Our lips meeting, I began to walk backwards into the house while gently tugging on Brooke's tie to bring her with me. I hadn't decided whether I would attend the next Dunfield High reunion, but I would forever be grateful that I had gone to the first.
The End